Capisce
by JazzyCat
Summary: She's broken, he's gotta watch over her. He's intrigued, and he's not a quitter. He won't give up on this job but it would be a whole lot easier if she wasn't the youngest daughter of a mafia boss, not to mention "forcefully deflowered"...
1. Chapter 1

On that rainy day no one ventured outside of their houses for too long. Everyone was tucked away inside, safe and dry, warm and happy. Only one person could be seen running through the downpour, across the street from where his car was parked, holding his jacket above his head to protect himself. It wasn't working.

He knocked three times on the door before it was opened, and he rushed inside to the foyer. He shook the water from his hair and handed his soaking coat to the maid. Urgently, he turned to the man who opened the door. "Where is she?" The butler looked down at his feet.

"This way." The butler led the man through the living room and the dining room. "She's been out there since it happened. We can't get her out of that chair." He gestured through the screen door to the garden. There sat a girl, in a chair in front of the roses, soaking wet, and facing away from the door. She sat perfectly still, no signal of movement, no telltale signs of life. "She's barely eaten."

"Well I'm sure you wouldn't either, if that had happened to you...if you were a young girl, that is."

"Sir, are you here to see the master? Or to ogle his daughter?" The butler asked testily.

"Ah, thank you for reminding me." He followed the butler away. As they turned, so did the girl, her sad eyes blank and lifeless as they took in the sight of the door. She didn't even shiver in the cold rain. The man was gone, and she turned back to the roses and the rhythmic beat of the raindrops on the petals.

"I have something for him," the strange man said, taking a manila folder from the sanctuary his jacket had provided outside. It contained a massive amount of papers.

"Master Kazuki should be in his study." The butler walked stiffly as he navigated the hallways to one door in particular. He knocked.

"Come in," asked a new voice. A gloved hand turned the knob, allowing the visitor to pass.

"Sir, a Mr. Kouta to see you."

"Thank you. You may go." The door closed. Kazuki pulled up another chair. "Kouta, please, sit." He did. "What have you found for me?"

"Well, sir, I've scoured for someone suitable and I've narrowed it down to about fifty possibilities." Kouta handed the floder to the older man. "They've all got experience, skill and excellent references, all but one."

"If there aren't references then why bother?"

"He was most exceptional, sir. I know someone who has met him and they say it's not just talk. His abilities are real."

"Have you met him?"

"No...I haven't." Kazuki flipped through the pages, extracting one or two whenever necessary. He laid them on his desk. When he'd finished reading them all, he closed the folder and slid the papers he's taken out toward Kouta. "Ive seen these people already. I'll read through the rest of them tonight and try to pick on by morning." He massaged his temple. "Who was the one you were talking about?'

Kouta too the folder, sifted through it and found the one particular resume he needed. He handed it to his superior. "Him, sir. He's an experienced fighter, and though he's never fought for anyone before, his skill is unmatched. And...I thought he might be better because he's closer to her age."

Kazuki studied the photo paper-clipped onto the file. He read through the entire thing three times before agreeing to meet with him. Kouta was relieved and happy.

"Thank you, sir! Shall I arrange it?" Kazuki didn't answer right away. He read a few others and decided on them as well, then handed the pile to his subordinate.

"All of these, please. I'd like to meet with them tomorrow."

"Yes, sir." Kouta left his boss to his work and left the house, once again pulling his jacket over his head as a makeshift umbrella.

* * *

"Sakura-chan," Kazuki said, addressing his daughter. She was still out in the rain. "Come inside! You'll catch a cold!" She made no movement to acknowledge him. It was as if she was in her own world. He walked outside into the garden and hopped over the short pansies that lay between him and his daughter. "Come on," he said, shaking her shoulder gently. She didn't move. He sighed and lifted her from the chair himself, carrying her inside with him.

"Take care of her please," he said to two of the maids that had come to help. They nodded and led her into the bathroom to dry her off and give her a change of clothes while Kazuki went to change his and returned to his study. Things had to change.

* * *

_The Next Day..._

Mr. Haruno rubbed his temples as another possibility walked away from him. He sighed deeply and remembered the conversation that had just taken place.

_"What makes you think you're cut out for the job?"_

_"I'm a decent worker and when I want something to happen, it happens."_

_"Like what?"_

_"Like this one time in high school, I willed a girl into going out with me." Kazuki stared at him waiting for him to say he was kidding, but saw the man he was interviewing was completely serious about this. He really thought could make things happen like that. _

_"Umm...thank you. You may go. I'll contact you on a later date after reviewing everyone again..."_

Kazuki had no intention of contacting him. Instead, he shuffled the papers on the desk in front of him and waited for the next person he'd been arranged to interview to show up. He leaned back in his chair. The door opened, and he looked up, expecting to see the face of a young man, but instead saw the two faces of his oldest daughters.

"Daddy," his oldest, Ran, said. "We heard you were looking for a bodyguard for Sakura. Are you really?" She and her younger sister Ayame looked at him with sweet, falsely innocent eyes that he almost couldn't resist. He laced his fingers and leaned back, turning his chair away from them.

"I am." He heard a knock at the door and turned to his daughters. "But I've got company here, so if you'd excuse yourselves, why don't you go be with your sister?" They bowed. They excused themselves, and a man walked in the door, taking their place in the room.

"Are you Kazuki Haruno?" the man asked.

"Yes. You may address me as 'Kazu', it's what my friends and subordinates call me. Please, have a seat." Kazuki watched the man as he walked. He was tall, with strong shoulders, a confident stride, and he was young and good-looking on top of it all. He sat in the only other chair in the room and looked his interviewer square in the eye--another good quality. Kazuki liked him more and more by the second.

"So," he asked--he had to look down at the resume in his hand for the name--Sasuke. "What makes you think you're qualified to be my daughter's bodyguard?" Sasuke's stone cold eyes didn't hesitate, though his voice didn't answer right away.

"I'm not exactly sure what you want me to say here." He answered. "No matter what you ask, there are always those who lie to make you like them more, respect them more, trust them more. Then there are those who would truthfully answer that they aren't sure if they're capable. Personally, I believe I'm very capable, because I've got experience. But if that's not the answer you were looking for, then in your eyes I'm not capable at all." His face remained calm while saying it, proving that he was indeed, a strong person. He wasn't buckling under the pressure Kazuki put on him.

"That's...a very educated answer. Let's try another. Why do you want this job."

"I need a job." He left it at that, simple, clean, easy. He seemed more comfortable answering questions now.

"Something recently...happened... to my daughter, which is the entire reason we're looking for someone. Do you think you can protect her efficiently?"

"I think you already asked a similar question, but on order to answer this one, I'm going to have to ask one of my own. What 'happened'?" Sasuke watched the man in front of him squirm uncomfortably, and that itself told him all he needed to know. But he wanted to hear it. He needed to be trusted.

"Well, I'm sure you're aware of my position as a 'mafia boss' as they say. Well, I have many enemies because of that. I also have three daughters. Girl are always seen as the weak ones, and my youngest was seen as the target for a recent kidnapping. We got her back through ransom, but she'd already been..." he waved his hands as if searching for a word. Sasuke decided to take pity on him and give him a hand.

"Raped?"

Kazuki cringed. "Yes." He shuffled more papers to fill the awkward void in conversation. "I see you have a clean bill of health and are very well educated in combat..." he muttered under his breath like a side note. "Mr. Uchiha, I'd like to be frank with you. You're the most promising bodyguard I've seen yet, but you have no references, which hinders your chances a bit..." Sasuke saw the fib in his eye. He knew he'd a good as gotten the job. "The only thing left would be meeting my daughter..." Sasuke's heart sank. "But after what's happened, I'm sure she wouldn't take kindly to anyone. This is my choice, I suppose. " He stood and held out his hand to the younger man. "Congratulations. The job is yours."

"Thank you, sir."

"Now, let me go over the basics with you. You'll be asked to take a room in the house to stay close. You'll accompany my daughter anytime she leaves the house, and be with her wherever she goes, whether it be to school or to the movies with her friends. You will not, of course, have to follow her into the bathroom or anything, just wait outside. I'll trust you to keep her safe, Mr. Uchiha, please don't let me down."

"I won't, sir."

"My maid will show you to your room, and if possible I'd like you to be finished moving in by tomorrow." Sasuke nodded, they exchanged goodbyes, and the younger man left. The second he was gone, Ran and Ayame were at their father's side.

"Was that him?" Ayame asked, watching him through the window. "He's cute. Nice little a--" Ran slapped a hand over her younger sister's mouth to stop her from saying such things in their father's presence.

"Did you decide, then father?" she asked, looking up through cherry red bangs. "I hope you can trust this man. Sakura can't deal with someone else trying something." Ran grabbed Ayame by the ponytail and dragged her off to Sakura's room. They didn't expect to find her there, but she was tucked in between the sheets, still sleeping it seemed.

"Sakura-chan..." Ran whispered. "Time to get up. It's nearly noon." The figure in the bed moved. A sad eye peeked out. "Oh, Sakura." Her sisters came and sat on her bed, snuggling with her to try and cheer her up.

"Do you feel like going out today?" Ayame asked. Sakura shook her head. "Do you feel like watching a movie with us?" Sakura didn't shake her head, so they took that as a yes. The two scooped their youngest sister right up out of bed and led her to the living room of their house where they began arguing over what to watch.

"Romance," argued Ayame, who was all about love and boys.

"Comedy," Ran said. At that moment, she just wanted to cheer her little sister up and a romance wasn't going to do that. They were so into their disagreement that they didn't even notice the pink-haired girl slip away.

She padded through the kitchen and sneaked out the back door. The dirt of the garden tickled her bare feet as she made her way across to the chair by the roses. She slumped into it and stared at the ruby-red petals on the fragrant blossoms. Her eyes watered. She didn't want to remember it, but without distractions, she couldn't help it. She drew her knees up under her chin, resting her heels on the edge of the chair. She wrapped her arms around her legs.

_On her way home from school, she stopped to tie her shoe, and her sisters hadn't noticed. They didn't usually all walk together anyway, so it didn't much matter to Sakura that her sisters were walking away. She noticed, once she was finished, that they other was coming loose, so she fixed that one as well. She stood and picked up her bag, walking slowly, enjoying the time she had to herself. It was the start of spring, so the flowers were blooming. The peach blossom trees were her favorites. _

_A sudden foreboding change in the wind didn't faze her in the slightest, and she didn't suspect anything was wrong until the car came up beside her. The driver, a man in his late twenties, possibly early thirties, leaned out of the window, cigarette in hand. He was wearing sunglasses and a stupid grin and that was reason enough not to trust him. But Sakura was one of the few people in her family--a family of mafia members--that actually thought people were good by nature. She trusted people perhaps more than she should. So when he offered her a ride, she took him up on it. _

_"Where ya live, sweetheart?" He asked. Sakura wasn't that dumb. She knew not to tell complete strangers where she lived. Though she'd accept rides from them, and probably candy if they offered._

_"You can just drop me off at the next corner. I'm meeting someone there," she told him. When he drove past the corner, only then did her brow crease in worry. "You passed it," she pointed out. He only nodded._

_"I know." In the rearview mirror she could see his face. There was no longer a grin. No longer a joke playing behind his eyes. Instead she saw recognition. This man knew who she was and what he could get away with by using her. She was a fool for not seeing it earlier. _

Sakura sniffled as the memories flooded back into her mind for the dozenth time, completely unaware she was being watched. She reached a pale finger toward a petal and smoothed her finger pad against it. Sasuke, high in a tree outside the walls of the estate, peered down at the girl he was supposed to guard. He hadn't even met her but he saw her as weak. because she couldn't harden herself against this sort of thing, she was weak. Women always went around saying "we're strong, we're strong," and Sasuke found it disgusting when they couldn't toughen up. His eyes jumped back on the girl as she moved, dipping one foot over the armrest of the chair and into the pond.

_When the car stopped, Sakura watched the man get out of the car, and shoved herself into a corner of the back seat. She wanted nothing to do with him. Her father being who he was, she'd had talks since she was a little kid about dangerous it was to be alone. She'd learned at an early age about sex, rape, and kidnappings. She had to. It was for her own safety. But the fact that she completely ignored everything she'd been taught proved she hadn't learned it very well. _

_The car door opened and an arm reached in for her. She held her school bag in front of her chest, as if to protect herself, but he smacked it out of the way. It fell from her frightened fingers to the floor. She grabbed it again at the same time that the arm grabbed her, pulling her from the car. "Let go!" She protested, and kicked and screamed, but they were in a place where few people could hear her, if any at all. She was pulled into one of the many warehouses around her and handed off to a different guy. _

_"Write up a ransom note for her folks." Sakura's eyes widened in terror to see that this man was even begger than the last, and twice as mean-looking. _

_"I'm gonna have some fun with you," he said, chuckling, his sour breath hitting her face. _

She could still smell that stench.

_"Let me go! Let me go!"_

_"Not until we get what we want out of you." She knew that there was more than one meaning to that. She fought. Don't you dare say she didn't try. There was no way in hell she was just going to lay back and take it, but with someone easily three times her size on top of her, there really was no hope. She didn't stand a chance. _

"Oh, Sakura..." Ran had realized in the midst of the argument that she wasn't there anymore, and they knew exactly where she was. In the garden, as usual, tears staining her pretty face. "Sakura..." Ran hugged her youngest sister gently. She blamed herself. Everyone did. Sakura blamed herself for being small and weak, Ayame and Ran blamed themselves for leaving her like that, and her father blamed himself for having the status he did, for not teaching her well enough.

But no matter what, everyone was optimistic. The man who did it was locked away--better for him, because a few of her father's men would've just killed him slowly--and everyone was hopeful that at some point in their life they could get over it. Everyone but Sakura. She hadn't said a word since she was found by one of her father's subordinates, naked as the day she was born, crying, bleeding, and broken. Hadn't spoken, barely eaten, hadn't slept much at all, and she didn't think she could ever forget. Never.

"Sakura, come inside." The girl let her sisters lead her inside, and Sasuke was more than intrigued when she peeked over her shoulder as though she felt something was there, watching her.

He was beginning to think he might have been wrong about her.


	2. Chapter 2

_The next day..._

"Here's your room Mr. Uchiha. I hope it suits your tastes." The maid opened the door for him and he got a look inside.

"This will do just fine, thanks." He put his things down, planning to unpack later, as he figured his employers might want to see him. It didn't surprise him when the maid told him so.

"The master would like to see you, please come this way." Sasuke stuck his hands down in his pockets and followed. Along the way he tried to memorize the layout of the house, so he wouldn't get lost, but he hadn't seen it all yet. He only managed to remember the path from his new room to his boss's study. The maid left, leaving the two of them alone.

"You wanted to see me?"

"Yes, thank you. How do you like your room?"

"It's fine, sir."

"Well, I'm glad. Um, I thought I should inform you that it's right across the hall from my daughter's room. Also, I'd like you to come to dinner tonight. I've arranged for you to meet Sakura beforehand, but she's been very distant lately, so the more time you spend together the better. It's very fortunate that you're her age. You might seem less like a threat, and you can go to school with her without questions being asked."

"Yeah..." Sasuke was growing tired of talking. He was usually a quiet person, and now spent his time with a very talkative one.

"But anyway, I won't continue to bore you, I just wanted to tell you that. You can go finish unpacking, and if you need anything, don't hesitate to ask one of the maids, or myself."

"Thank you." Sasuke bowed politely and walked back to his room where he surveyed the interior. He had a big canopy bed, a chest of drawers, a bureau, a closet, his own bathroom, and more space than he knew what to do with. He shoved all of his clothes into the drawers with no real sense of organization and then unloaded his books onto the shelf on the bureau.

* * *

"Sakura, you can't stay in here all day and mope. Get up." Sakura's oldest sister Ran grabbed her by the upper arm and dragged her away from the chair in the garden. "You've been there for a week. You've got to get up and get back to life!" The pink haired girl didn't put up a fight. Ran threw up her arms in exasperation. "I just don't know what to anymore." Ayame poked her head outside.

"Hey, the new guy's moving in today. He's cute, too."

"Ayame, that's not helping."

"Hey, I'm just saying. Plus the maid's looking for you, Ran."

"What? Why? Well I'll go find her. Will you just take care of her, please?" Ran left and Ayame stepped in.

"Okay, look, Sakura, you really have to stop sulking and get over this. I know everyone's already told you this, but I think I can help, come on." Ayame grabbed her little sister's hand and together they jogged through the house back toward Sakura's room. Across the hall was his room. The door wasn't closed. "You stay here and I'll see if I can find a change of clothes in your messy room." Ayame left her sitting against the wall in the hallway and went to search for something for her to wear.

From inside the new guy's room--she didn't know his name yet--she could hear noises. He was still in there. The pink-haired girl's eyes left the floor and headed to the door. Slowly, she got up and padded over to the entry. Bracing one hand against the door jamb, she leaned in and peeked in.

He was pretty. Dark hair, dark eyes. He was well-built, and she felt weird for noticing, but she couldn't turn away. So this was the person she's have to spend most of her time with? At least he wasn't hard on the eyes. She heard something down the hall and tore her eyes away for a fraction of a second. There was nothing there and so she looked back, only to find the boy inches away, leaning down so their eyes were level. Surprised, she stumbled back, nearly falling on her butt.

"Spying?" He asked jokingly, pushing open the door a bit more.

"Just returning the favor," Sakura said after catching her breath.

"Is that the first thing you've said all week?" Sakura remained silent. She averted her eyes to the floor. Sasuke resisted the urge to grab her chin and force her face upward. He wanted to see her eyes, not the roots of her pretty pink hair. He didn't touch her, though. His job was not to let people touch her. Instead, he tried to act normal and stuck out his hand. "My name's Sasuke. I'll be your bodyguard for the time being."

Tentatively, Sakura took his hand. "Sakura." She dropped it faster than he thought possible and turned away from him, walking down the hall toward the stairs. Almost as soon as she was gone, Ayame emerged from Sakura's room with a bundle of clothes in her arms.

"I found something that...Sakura?" She looked both ways down the hall before noticing Sasuke in the doorway across the hall. "Where'd she go?" He felt her gaze as it traveled down his taut, ripped stomach and arms. He answered by lifting an arm and pointing toward the stairs. "Oh...uh, thanks." Blushing, she hurried off after her sister. "Sakura, where'd you go!?" Sasuke left them to it, turning back into his room and closing the door.

"Where'd you go?" Ayame demanded of her younger sibling once she was found. "I was looking everywhere for you! Nevermind, just go shower and change." She thrust a pile of clothes into the hands of the younger girl who trudged off obediently to the bathroom.

She let the water heat up as she undressed, slowly. She stood, naked, and held her hand under the stream to check for temperature. She drew back the door enough to climb in, and closed it right away so as not to let out the heat. She shivered at the sudden temperature shock but the water slithered down her body and felt so delicious on her skin that she had to stay in a few extra minutes.

She'd gone a day or two without, so this time, she wasn't gonna skimp on the soap. She got the bar and a loofah and began to scrub, for the first time in a week and a half, caring about her body again. She spared no inch of her skin, washing over and over again until she was pinker than her hair, then turned off the water. She stood there for another minute or two and let the water drip from her hair, her fingertips, the end of her nose.

She lost track of the time she stood there, sinking back into her thought again before she heard a knock on the door. It was Ran. "Are you okay in there?" She said nothing, but wrapped a towel around herself and opened the door just a crack to peek out. "Uh...oh, there you are. I was just wondering if...well I'll just go now, bye!" She walked away hurriedly, and through the crack, Sakura could see Sasuke's bedroom door, which was also open, only a crack. Not wanting him to see her in a towel, she closed it.

She searched for--and found--the hair dryer and set to work, combing her pink locks with her fingers and allowing the hot air to style them into perfection...or as close to perfection as she could get after neglecting them. She looked at herself in the mirror, breast-length hair perfectly straight, and nodded contentedly. She looked decent. But, her sister had forgotten to get her a bra, and she needed one with the thin short she'd been given. Now to escape to her room without being seen.

* * *

She sat against her door three minutes later, panting. She'd made it, but barely. And as soon as she'd made it she realized she could have put her shirt on and then taken it off to get her bra, and smacked her forehead at her own stupidity. Quickly, she pulled on her clothing and sat at the vanity table to fix her hair. She picked up the soft-bristle brush and began in long, slow strokes.

Normally, she hummed while she did her makeup and hair, but stayed silent this time. She stared at herself in the mirror, her eyes never leaving their reflection as she stared into the depth of the sea green.

_"I'm...horrid." _She thought to herself. _"Disgusting, defiled, dirty... and I'll never be clean."_ She sighed and let her gaze travel down the length of her body, checking her appearance one last time. The low-cut v-neck shirt she was wearing revealed the fading scratches on her chest where she'd been grabbed by urgent hands. She grabbed the neck and pulled it up to hide them, but it only slid back down into place.

_His hands were rough as they grabbed her, scraping her skin and making her bleed. Her arms were already bruised form trying to fend him off. _

_"No!!" She screamed, but the only people who could hear her wouldn't help her. __Hot tears burned her eyes as she clenched her teeth and cried, screaming, shouting, praying that he would get off her and someone would come save her. _

_He tore her school uniform skirt away from her, ripping the stitches around the zipper in his haste. She employed her legs, kicking violently, catching him under the chin with the heavy heel of one of her shoes. _

_"We've sent the ransom note," he panted in her ear. "We got no reply. We're sending back something of yours to show we're serious. _

_Sakura's eye widened, remembering movies and stories about hostages who had fingers or ears cut of and sent back to their families. She started crying afresh. _

_"Shh," the man on top of her soothed. "This'll only hurt for a moment."_

"Sakura! Dinner!" She was wrenched from her thoughts by her sister knocking on her door. She put down her brush and slid on her slippers, walking slowly across the room. When she reached the door, she gripped the handle and threw a hesitant look backward. In her mirror she thought she saw the image of her broken self. And the face of the man.

"What too you so long?" Ayame asked, throwing an arm around here younger sister's shoulder. "I called you for, like, an hour." Sakura seriously doubted that, and conveyed her feelings with a roll of the eyes. Ayame chuckled. "Okay, a few minutes." She let her arm drop back to her side and pulled ahead. "Hurry up, I'm hungry!" Sakura picked up the pace for a while, and once her sister rounded the corner, went back to walking slowly.

She stretched, extending her arms and yawning, though she couldn't understand why she was so tired after sleeping all day. Before she knew it, she was at the doorway to the dining room. She bowed to her father, who stood at the head of the table. He nodded his head back, and watched her with one eye as she walked to her seat.

"Thank you for joining us." He held out his hands and everyone—including Sasuke, who she hadn't noticed was at the table until she had to take his hand—linked hands and said grace before sitting. The servants brought out the food and everyone picked up their forks and began to eat. After a moment of brief silence, Kazuki cleared his throat. "Sakura, this is Sasuke, your new bodyguard. Sasuke, this is Sakura."

Keeping her eyes on her food, moving it around with her fork, Sakura replied, "We've met." She looked up, startled at the sound of cutlery hitting the china plates. Her sisters and father stared wide-eyed at her after speaking for the first time in their presence. She returned to her food, noticing the man next to her didn't look up or react at all, having already spoken to her.

Everyone quickly tried to regain their composure, acting as though nothing out of the ordinary had just taken place. They finished the rest of the meal in silence, Ran and Ayame sneaking glances at each other once in a while, as if they knew a secret no one else was aware of.

"Sakura...you need to go back to school." The girl stopped abruptly, mid-chew, eyes locked on the tablecloth in front of her. Her face was contorted into a mix of fear and disgust. She put down her fork and walked away from the table. Kazuki started to get up and go after her, but Sasuke stopped him.

"I'll get her," he said, and Kazu, curious as to what would happen next, let him go after her. He understood that in order for this to work, she had to trust him, so this would be a test.

* * *

He found her in the bathroom, throwing up. She'd left the door open, but he still knocked, like a gentleman. She looked up at him when she'd finished.

"Are you alright?" She nodded, and he stepped in cautiously. She grabbed a towel from the nearby rack to wipe her face before she had the urge to bend over into the toilet again. Tentatively, Sasuke held her hair back from her face. He wasn't completely comfortable with being so close with anyone, or such intimate gestures, but he knew as well as Kazu that it was necessary to gain her trust. He contemplated rubbing her back, and decided against it, lest she think he was hitting on her or something. When she was finally finished, he let her wipe her face and brush her teeth. Then she left and went to her room. He followed.

"Are you okay?" He said softly into the door. When he didn't get an answer, he opened the door and peeked in. She was on her bed, facing the wall. "Can I come in?" No answer again. He went in anyway. Slowly, he approached her. "Are you okay?" he repeated. This time, she shook her head. He sat down beside her. She slid away from him.

_"That's right,"_ he thought. _"She was raped. She probably doesn't trust men much anymore..."_ He deduced that that was the reason she didn't want to go back to school. But he'd still ask.

"Why don't you want to go to school?" Silence. "Is there someone there you don't like?" Nothing. "Are you afraid?" Her head twitched a fraction of an inch. He'd found it. "What are you afraid of?" He looked at her, but he couldn't see her eyes. "Look, I'm not really...good at this kind of thing. Can you just...tell me what you're afraid of?"

"It's not that simple." At least he was getting words out of her.

"Sakura...san...you don't have to be scared. I'm going to protect you. Nothing will hurt you, I promise."

"You...promise?" He nodded. He knew he would keep that promise, but he never could have fathomed how important it would be to her.


	3. Chapter 3

"Mmmm..." Sakura made small almost humming noises in frustration as she tried to tie the scarf of her school uniform. In the week or so she hadn't gone to school, she'd been so out of it that she didn't remember how. She sighed as she tied it into a terrible knot, leaving the ends uneven and found it impossible to untie.

She heard a knock at her door and flashed her eyes over the wood. She untied it hastily and tried again, making it even worse than the first time. Giving up, she answered the door. It was Ayame.

"We're gonna be late..." she said, and her eyes flickered over her younger sister's almost perfect appearance. "Hey, you're ready...well, almost. Let me fix that for you." Ayame fixed it to match hers. "There. Now come on, before we have to skip breakfast." She led her sister by the hand down the hall. They ran down the stairs together and grabbed their bags, then hurried into the kitchen where the cook had prepared toast for them. Sasuke was there, already eating.

'Morning," he said, more to Sakura than anyone else, but it was Ayame and Ran that replied.

"Mornin'" they said together, and grabbed their food on their way out the door.

"Ready to go?" Sasuke asked, putting his plate in the sink and turning to face her. She'd been staring at her food rather than eating it, completely zoned out, but when he spoke, she jumped in her seat.

"Huh?" She said, looking completely lost.

"Are you ready to go?" Sasuke was surprisingly patient. She figured, as a bodyguard, he'd be one of those tough guys who were just horrible, with no tolerance for anything. But she'd been surprised. Her views on him had changed when he checked on her. In some weird way, he'd given her the courage to go to school. Now that her sisters were gone, though, she felt one again uneasy.

"I don't think I'll ever be ready," she said, clutching her stomach. She'd started getting pangs again, from fear.

"Well, you'll never know until you try."He opened the door for her and allowed her out first. Watching her as she walked down the driveway, he couldn't help but remember the night before, and how she'd clutched the sleeve of his shirt and looked at him with pitiful, broken eyes. "You promise?" She'd said, and just the sincere way she'd said it wrenched him apart for saying something he wasn't sure if he meant.

Sasuke closed the door and caught up to the girl. They merged onto the sidewalk and everything got tense. Sakura's shoulders stiffened and Sasuke had no doubt that she was remembering something.

"Sasuke…"

"Yes, Sakura-san?"

"Did you mean what you said? I mean…when you promised me you'd keep me safe?"

"I'll do my best, Sakura-san." It seemed to be enough for her. She nodded, never taking her eyes of the ground.

"Do you think everyone at school knows? That I…"

"I don't know. Your father seems like the type to make sure it was covered up, so they'll probably think you've been sick."

"Oh." Sakura flicked her hair behind her ear. Sick? Hardly. It was much worse than any illness you could get.

_"Stop it! Please stop it!" Her cries did nothing to deter him. Having torn off her clothing, he proceeded to remove his own, nearly tearing the loops on his pants when he tore his belt away. In his haste, he might have broken the zipper to his pant. He didn't even take them off. Just opened the enough to take it out. _

_"Now hush," he commanded, but she had no intention of doing so. She screamed even louder as he lowered himself over her again, pinning her arms with his, and planting his hips between her thighs, where her legs couldn't effectively kick him away. _

_"Don't so this," she pleaded, trying once more. "Please don't, just don't. Please, please, please, please…."_

_He chuckled at her futile attempts and with one movement, he was in. There was a burning pain between her legs as he moved away, and entered again. He repeated the motion over and over. Sakura cried in shame, trying to leave her body. She'd rather have been anywhere but there, even dead. _

_"Sakura…" _

Odd, she hadn't remembered the man knowing her name.

"Sakura!" It wasn't his voice.

Sakura snapped back from her reverie and saw she'd wandered into the street. A car headed toward her with no visible intention of stopping. Her heart rate picked up. She was too scared to move, her eyes locked on the headlights.

"Sakura!" That voice again. The green orbs glanced toward the speaker, breaking the spell the lights had on her, and she could just see Sasuke speeding toward her.

It was quite a shock to her body when she suddenly went from a stationary position to flying across to the other side of the street, propelled by Sasuke, who was still holding onto her.

He made it just in time. As the car passed, it was so close Sasuke felt it brush his foot right before he and Sakura landed on the dirt of the other side of the street, completely safe. They rolled for a few feet before stopping.

Sakura opened her eyes and found herself staring into Sasuke's. She looked down. He was pinning her. Quickly, she pulled her legs up and gracefully tucked them under herself as she sat up. That was too close, and she wasn't talking about the car.

It wasn't his fault. It was just how they landed. But he wasn't confused when she withdrew from him, even after he'd saved her life.

"Are you alright?" He asked. Safety was his priority. She nodded in reply, and he helped her to her feet, not saying another word or apologizing for the close contact. Her heart was still pounding. Ever so often, though, he would throw a quick glance at her over his shoulder. They walked to school in silence.

Arriving at the front door, they were noticed. Of course, Sasuke being a gorgeous, young boy, people who saw them together immediately assumed he was her boyfriend, especially since none of them knew him, and he was wearing a suit that looked something like a school uniform, but not that school's.

They pushed into the building, and made their way down the crowded halls, Sakura now in the lead. She went to her classroom, only to be immediately ambushed by her girlfriends. Sasuke hung back. She was in no danger with girls. He'd jump in if there was trouble, but he saw no reason to intervene.

"Who's the guy?" One whispered into her ear.

"Where were you all this time?" Another inquired.

"Why are you blushing?" A third quipped, but it wasn't until the fourth one asked "are you crying?" That she actually broke into tears and rushed to the bathroom. Sasuke would have followed her, like he had at home, but this was a public place, and following her into the ladies' room wouldn't be acceptable. He rushed after her, but stood outside while her friends went in after her.

"Sakura..." It was the pretty blond one with the long hair who spoke. "What did we say? Are you alright?" Sasuke heard a subtle sob as the reply. "Okay, everyone else get out!" The blond commanded. The boy watched as a small parade of worried girls were practically kicked out of the bathroom. They grumbled, but didn't dare disobey.

"Now, tell me everything."

"Okay..." Sakura sniffled and her voice was low. "A little while ago I was walking home..." her voice got so low Sasuke couldn't hear it. "And then they caught the guy, but...I'm still scared. Daddy hired me a bodyguard. But please! Please, Ino!" Sasuke learend the blond's name. Ino. "Don't tell anyone! I want them to believe I was sick. I don't want anyone to know."

"Shh. Don't worry about it. I'm your best friend. I wouldn't betray you like that. Come on, class is starting, we should get back."

"I guess you're right." They walked out, Sakura still sniffling. She motioned to wipe her eyes with her sleeve, but before she could stain the white cloth with her mascara, Sasuke held out his handkerchief. She stared at it, and then at him, and then back at it.

"Are you going to take it?"

"Oh...thanks..."She dried her face and gave it back to him." He stuffed it into his pocket and followed her and her friend--who kept eyeing him like a hungry animal--to the classroom.

During the class, he sat back and surveyed the room. This was one of the fifty or so in the building, all built about the same, other than the placement of the door. The outer wall was made up entirely of windows. Windows of glass. Not bulletproof or shatter resistant, either, just the standard everyday glass. The vent was big enough for someone to squeeze into, and all-in-all, these rooms were completely unsafe. He made a mental note to talk to the principal and Kazuki about that later.

Class was over and he followed her to the next place. He knew the layout of the rooms now, he'd just have to learn the halls.

Sasuke had some free time throughout the day to think, so he found himself wondering what had happened. How does someone like Sakura get herself kidnapped in the first place? She was quiet at the moment, but from what the boy knew, she wasn't a stupid person. And knowing who she was, in relation to her father, a boss of the mafia, she should have known she'd be the target of kidnappings and such from a young age.

So how did it happen? He strained his mind trying to think, but couldn't come up with anything, unless she went with them willingly. She wasn't stupid enough to do that though.

"Sasuke...Sasuke?" He came out of his thoughts to see Sakura standing a few feet in front of him, leaning down and staring into his stoic face, trying to get his attention. She was speaking quietly, so it had taken him longer to realize it.

"Coming." The boy stood from the chair and followed her out of the room. Her friends were there waiting.

"You guys go ahead. I have to meet with the principal this period." She watched her friends go around the corner, and as soon as she was sure they were gone, she turned back to the raven-haired bodyguard. "Are you okay?"

"Mm."

"I was calling you for almost five minutes. Are you sure?"

"Yeah. Sorry. It won't happen again."

"Alright... now come on. I've got to see the counselor, and I don't wanna go alone."

"You really have a meeting with the counselor?"

"Yeah...it seems stupid, though, because everyone thinks I was sick."

"So why no just skip it."

"I couldn't do that." She looked at the office she was supposed to enter. "I wish I could, though. The counselor is such a perv..." Her eyes because fearful at that moment, and Sasuke wrapped an arm around her shoulder and steered her away.

"Then just go to class. It is my job to protect you, and I refuse to allow you into that office." She looked up at him, but he just stared straight ahead and kept walking. This wasn't the time to get close, he scolded himself. He hadn't had actual feelings for anyone in a long time. And by feelings he meant feelings. Not just romantic feelings, but any feelings other than hate or indifference.

"Sasuke?" He was shaken from his thoughts by the quiet voice of the girl next to him.

"Yes?"

"What you said before...your promise...did you really mean it?" He didn't answer her, or even look at her for a little while, and Sakura felt discouraged. Like that somehow voided what he'd said earlier. She looked down at her feet.

"Yes."

"Then...I don't need to skip this. We'll go." She whirled around and grabbed her bodyguard boldly by the arm, dragging him after her as she walked briskly toward the door labeled "COUNSELOR". She felt confidence and courage now that she had someone who would protect her, and this seemed like something trivial. Sasuke followed obediently.

Sakura politely knocked on the door before opening it and poking her head in. "You wanted to see me, sir?"

"Miss Haruno? Come in, have a seat." The girl opened the door a little wider and walked through. Sasuke trotted in with her. "Is this your friend? I'm afraid I'll have to ask you to wait outside; this is a private session." Sasuke ignored the man's words, instead focusing on whether or not he was a threat. He seemed to be a scraggly old man, thinning gray hair, wrinkles, a terrible comb-over, and what he suspected to be the beginnings of liverspots dotted across his balding head. He looked harmless, but his eyes were what made Sasuke stay. His eyes were those of someone who knew too much--more than they were letting on. He didn't move.

"Sir?"

"Hn?"

"If you would?"

"I won't."

"What is your name young man?"

"You may address me as Mr. Uchiha."

"Well, then, Mr. Uchiha, I cannot allow you to sit in on this meeting. Student confidentiality rules require--"

"They require that you ask the student in question if they mind, and since I'm here by her request, I doubt she minds." Sasuke grinned triuphantly and sat next to Sakura who was trying not to giggle. The counselor--whose nametag, lying on the desk amid the papers, said "Mr. Kuyoshi--huffed in defeat and sat down.

"Well, then I shall begin. Miss Haruno, should you ever feel uncomfortable with Mr. Uchiha being here, please let me know and I will have him escorted out." He cleared his throat and shuffled some papers which he then shoved into a manila folder. "Alright, Miss Haruno, we have reason to believe you were recently emotionally traumatized. Is this true?"

"Um...sort of."

"Sort of? What exactly happened to you the past week? You haven't come to school, your friends say they haven't been able to contact you, and your family won't answer the school's calls. Is everything alright? There wasn't a death in your family, was there?"

"No, no one's dead, and no, everything's not alright, but, sir, if I may, I'd like to leave."

"Miss Haruno, things won't get better until you talk about them."

"With all due respect, Mr. Kuyoshi, I'll talk about it when I'm ready." Sakura got up, feeling indignant, not even noticing that she let a bit of h er original, stubborn personality shine through. She grabbed her things, grabbed Sasuke, and left.

-- --

_"So?"_

"She left. And she had a friend with her. Some Uchiha guy."

_"Well you'll have to try again."_

"She's more stubborn than we thought. I thought you said she was broken!"

_"She was. She must be getting better."_

"You don't recover from rape in a week!"

_"Then something else must be pushing that out of her mind."_

"Like what?"

_"Something like friendship, loyalty, love. That sappy stuff you see in girly movies."_

"I don't watch those."

_"I digress. You'll have to break her again. Something to make her vulnerable, and then get her back in that counselor's office and do it right! Don't fail, Kuyoshi."_

"Yes sir."


End file.
